It's no longer a secret, even if it is a national embarrassment. Ex-KKK Grand Wizard, David Duke, is seeking the vacated Senate seat left by diaper-enthusiast David Vitter. Why not swap out one David for another, what could possibly go wrong? It turns out, it can get worse and without fierce opposition to hate, it will.

Alan Colmes conducted the first interview since Duke proclaimed his candidacy for the U.S. Senate. Not surprisingly, Duke's disdain for Jews was palpable throughout the roughly half-hour long interview, especially his hatred of Goldman Sachs. He admits they've contributed to 'both sides,' but he harps on Hillary's donations on behalf of the Wall Street investment firm, without Republican names being mentioned.

This Louisiana Republican is constantly whining about 'ethnic groups' like Mexicans and Jews having their own heritage groups, so why can't Whites of European descent have similar organizations? Duke is convinced he's gotten terrible billing by the media while Sen. Robert Byrd was forgiven for his racial trespasses. Obviously, the Democratic Senator publicly repented for his obvious racism while Duke owns it proudly.

Alan asked if he renounced his commentary as a Klansman and he basically said no, because you (Alan) don't know what I said when I was a Grand Wizard. He called Byrd a 'sellout' for succumbing to popular opinion. He sees himself as a more principled person because he won't deny his racial animus and try to promote accord among different races.

The most frightening aspect about Duke is his belief that he is absolutely 100% correct in his opinion that Whites are marginalized and discriminated against. He feels he represents most of this country in his thinking. He certainly represents far too many of the people who were at the RNC in Cleveland.

Friday, on The Alan Colmes Show,” Alan had the first national radio interview with former KKK leader David Duke, who earlier in the day announced he would be running for Senate in Louisiana on the heels of Donald Trump’s speech at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, OH. Duke told Alan about why he is running and why Donald Trump shares the “values of white America,” why freedom of speech is a “white thing,” and why he’s “sick and tired” of hearing about slavery:

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COLMES: Do you see Trump as a champion for white America?

DUKE: I wouldn’t say he’s a champion for white America, I think he shares a lot of the issues and values of white America.

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COLMES: Do you think whites are the country’s rightful owners?

DUKE: I think that white people were, no question, the creators of what we call white America.

COLMES: Are they the rightful owners of the country?

DUKE: I don’t know that, I think that white people built the country and in a sense, you know what I think what whites were the owners of? Do you know what I think white people wholly own? I think freedom of speech is a white thing. This is something that white people do. I think governments, this is a white thing.

COLMES: How is freedom of speech a white thing?

DUKE: Because these values were really promoted the most, more than any of the other people on the Earth, even though I respect other people and there are certainly people around the world who believe in freedom of speech, but there is no people on Earth than have had more great examples of incredible courage or sacrifice for freedom of speech, and we’re losing freedom of speech.

*****
This next part is beyond comprehension. You'd think that in 2016, after this nation has come so far to achieve gains in equality in the realms of racial, LGBTQ, marriage equality, women's rights and similar issues; that no one could hold insanely antiquated opinions on social matters and still be taken seriously for elected office, in any capacity. You would think that, but here we are, with a troubling soul like David Duke, who simply dismisses the horrors of our sordid history of legal human bondage, running for the United States Senate. It really is mind-blowing.

Republican David Duke honestly believes (or he has convinced himself that he does) that the acrimonious effects of slavery and the subsequent systemic inequality it created for generations past, present and future are insignificant. Frankly, he doesn't want to hear any more of it.

COLMES: When you say whites built the country, what about slaves who were brought here in chains who were put to work building this country? Black slaves?

DUKE: What does that got to do with any damn thing? Because the truth is that the country is not simply built by some of the labor.

COLMES: But it wasn’t just built by white people.

DUKE: You know what? I’m so sick and tired of hearing about slavery. You think slavery didn’t exist in Africa? Even Indian tribes.

COLMES: But blacks were brought here against their will in chains.

I was truly amazed that this way of virulent, hateful thinking is so widespread and so accepted. We already know enough about the dangers of a racial supremacist somehow slithering his way into power. We know that the Nazi-admiring White supremacists attract some of the most violent people, in a very pro-gun country.

Electing a person of Duke's moral fiber is a recipe for unimaginably frightening consequences. If you can listen to the whole interview, I recommend it, as it is a window into the mind of the self-righteous, warped Republican psyche. In a state where it's much more difficult for a likely Democratic minority voter to cast their ballot like Louisiana, David Duke could win.

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